Joseph Heft
From Ballotpedia
Joseph Heft (Republican Party) is running for election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 45. He declared candidacy for the Republican primary scheduled on March 3, 2026.
Heft completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Joseph Heft was born in Los Angeles, California. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2012 to 2016. He graduated from Brooke Point High School. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland Global Campus in 2021 and a graduate degree from the University of Texas at Tyler in 2023. His career experience includes working as a CEO, teaching English overseas, working as a security contractor, and launching a small business. He has been affiliated with Veterans of Foreign Wars and Boy Scouts of America.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on March 3, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45
Joseph Heft is running in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 45 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Joseph Heft  | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Joseph Heft completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Heft's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
I’m Joseph Heft, Marine Corps combat veteran, business leader, and community advocate running for the Texas House of Representatives to represent the people of Hays County. I served in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom and later supported defense operations as a civilian contractor during Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. After returning home, I built a career as a small-business owner and executive, leading projects that created jobs and strengthened local communities.
My mission is to bring the same discipline, accountability, and service first mindset I learned in uniform to the Texas Capitol. I believe government should spend wisely, build responsibly, and respect every taxpayer dollar.
Having lived, worked, and served across the country, I chose to call Hays County home because it reflects the best of Texas, hard working families, small business grit, and a deep sense of community. I’m not a career politician, I’m a neighbor who believes in results over rhetoric.
Together, we can fix our roads, fund our classrooms, and respect every dollar. Building a future that honors both our freedom and our responsibility to one another.- Fix the Roads, Fund the Classrooms, Respect Your Dollar. Texans deserve results, not excuses. I'll fight to prioritize infrastructure and education without raising taxes. That means using your money wisely, paving roads where families actually drive, strengthening classrooms that prepare our kids for the real world, and cutting waste that doesn't serve taxpayers. Accountability and transparency should be the rule, not the exception.
- A Veteran's Discipline. A Neighbor's Heart. I'm a Marine combat veteran who knows what service and sacrifice mean. I'm not a career politician, I'm a neighbor who believes public office is about duty, not privilege. I'll bring the same discipline, honesty, and commitment to Austin that I brought serving overseas. When I say I'll serve this community, I mean it.
- Keep Texas Strong, Local, and Free. Decisions about our water, growth, and safety belong close to home, not in Austin boardrooms or out-of-state committees. I'll defend local control, protect small businesses, and make sure state spending benefits Texans first. Our communities know their needs best, and it's time their voice, not bureaucracy, leads the way.
I'm passionate about restoring trust in government through fiscal responsibility, transparency, and local control. Texans deserve roads that work, schools that teach, and taxes that stay low. I believe in results, not bureaucracy. I'll prioritize infrastructure, education quality, and public safety while cutting wasteful spending and protecting taxpayer dollars. My focus is on empowering communities to make their own decisions and ensuring Austin serves the people, not the other way around.
I don't model myself after any one individual. I've learned the most from Marine NCOs who kept their word, small business owners who signed both sides of a paycheck, teachers who refused to give up on a kid, and first responders who run toward problems. The common thread is quiet competence, show up prepared, own mistakes, give credit, and deliver. That's the example I follow.
Integrity, accountability, and restraint. Spend taxpayer money like it's our own. Tell the truth, publish the numbers, and admit mistakes. Listen first, decide with facts, and keep promises. Protect liberty, property rights, and local control. Measure outcomes, if it doesn't work, fix it or end it.
Write disciplined budgets, pass targeted laws that solve real problems, and hold agencies accountable. Deliver safer roads, strong schools, reliable water, and public safety without raising taxes. Cut red tape for small business. Answer the phone, solve constituent problems, and report back.
A measurable upgrade to daily life in Hays County. Safer corridors on I-35/FM 1626/RM 967, dependable water with leak-loss reductions and pipe rehab, and stronger classrooms through rigorous standards and real CTE/ dual credit options. I want a reputation for listening, acting, and reporting back. Publishing timelines, dollars, and results so neighbors can hold me accountable. Less posturing, more delivery. If people say, "Heft did what he said he'd do," that's the legacy.
September 11th. I grew up near the Pentagon at that time and remember the smoke, the silence in the skies, and neighbors leaving for long deployments. That day clarified the difference between noise and duty. It led me to the Marine Corps and it still informs how I make decisions, define the mission, take care of your people, and finish the job without fanfare.
My first job was selling cars for just under a year before I enlisted. Working straight commission taught me three things I carry into public service. Listen first, be straight about costs, and respect people's time and money. Families walked in with a budget and a need, my job was to match the two without games. That experience shaped my approach to policy. Clear numbers, no gimmicks, and accountability for every dollar. It's the same mindset behind my platform, fix the roads, fund the classrooms, and respect your dollar.
The Hobbit. It's a story about ordinary people choosing duty, loyalty, and perseverance over comfort. The hero isn't loud; he keeps going, keeps his word, and protects his friends. It's a great model for children to follow. Steady hands, clear priorities, and the humility to carry the pack when it's heavy.
I wouldn't pick a fictional character. Voters deserve a real, present-tense leader. Someone who shows up, takes responsibility, and delivers measurable results. I choose to be myself, in this moment, focused on safer roads, stronger classrooms, and respect for every tax dollar.
Coming home from combat and rebuilding a normal life. Sleep, purpose, paperwork, and the maze of agencies. I've had seasons where the hardest fight was off the battlefield, finding steady work, navigating benefits, and keeping a steady mind. Faith, routine, mentors, and service pulled me through. That's why I champion veteran mental health, faster agency timelines, and simple, enforceable rules so working families aren't punished by red tape
Co-equal partners with checks and balances. The governor executes, the legislature sets priorities, funding, and guardrails. Work together on infrastructure, education, and safety but the House must audit, question, and, when needed, say "no."
Explosive growth along I-35, aging roads and water systems, housing and property-tax pressure, border and fentanyl impacts on safety, classroom outcomes and workforce readiness, drought resilience, and keeping state government lean while demands grow.
Helpful, not required. I value real world execution. Marine, business leader, public safety advocate. I'll learn the rules fast, rely on experts when needed, and keep common sense at the center.
Yes. It takes 76 votes, 19 senators, and a governor's signature. I'll build coalitions without trading away core principles, prioritizing results over headlines. And we have already met with plenty local leaders from mayors to city council to find gaps between state and local execution.
A blend. Talmadge Heflin for budget discipline and transparency. Jimmie Don Aycock for pragmatic, classroom first education work. Firm principles, practical delivery. But we cannot forget the foundations our forefathers set, great leaders such as John Adams are our guiding voice.
No. I'm running to serve Texas House District 45, not to collect titles. Results here first. Not only that, situations here change so rapidly we can only focus on the next two years of service first.
A Hays County resident named Laura shared a long list of frustrations that reflect how everyday Texans are being ignored. Predatory towing, medical billing that traps patients in debt, and local contractors that overcharge or never deliver. She spent years trying to get answers from the same agencies that are supposed to protect her. Her story stuck with me because it shows how far government has drifted from service and accountability.
Yes, but tightly. Any emergency powers must be narrow, time limited, transparent, and subject to rapid legislative review and renewal. Protect churches, small business, and civil liberties.
Texas First & Fair Competition Act. Transparent scoring, hard preference for Texas companies and workers, sunlight on subcontracting, and a public "money leak" dashboard when awards go out-of-state or overseas, without sacrificing cost or quality.
Broad California style initiatives would invite out-of-state money and constitutional clutter. If Texans ever consider it, it must include strict single subject limits, fiscal notes, higher passage thresholds, and tight disclosure. I prefer representative lawmaking with public hearings and accountability.
A Hays County neighbor, walked me through a cascade of “systems” that were supposed to help but didn’t. Her car was towed from an apartment lot with inadequate visitor signage. When she appealed, the case was dismissed without real consideration of the evidence.
At home, she’s tied to septic “maintenance” contracts that too often fail to perform, change names, and price-gouge yet counties still punish the homeowner if the paperwork isn’t perfect.
On health care, she couldn’t get an upfront price for a cancer-rule-out procedure, had to put money down, then was double-billed and even charged under a different provider name, leaving her with no clean path to appeal.
She also described a clinic practice that publicly announces patients’ results, an obvious privacy failure, and a state investigation that has dragged on since 2021.
I'm proud that the Marines I led came home from a tough deployment and that we did our jobs under pressure. I earned the Combat Action Ribbon. I personally guided Marines away from active fire, returned fire, and we didn't lose anyone. Bringing Marines home and then building a small business from scratch taught me discipline, empathy, and accountability. That's the same way I'll serve. Quietly, competently, and results first.
Uniform chain of custody rules, auditable paper trails, risk limiting audits, timely results, strong ID, clean voter rolls, and a ban on private election funding. More training and protection for poll workers. Favor Texas based vendors for election systems wherever possible.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 28, 2025
Current members of the Texas House of Representatives
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Dustin Burrows
Representatives
District 1
Gary VanDeaver (R)
District 2
Brent Money (R)
District 3
Cecil Bell (R)
District 4
Keith Bell (R)
District 5
Cole Hefner (R)
District 6
Daniel Alders (R)
District 7
Jay Dean (R)
District 8
Cody Harris (R)
District 9
Trent Ashby (R)
District 10
Brian Harrison (R)
District 11
Joanne Shofner (R)
District 12
Trey Wharton (R)
District 13
Angelia Orr (R)
District 14
Paul Dyson (R)
District 15
Steve Toth (R)
District 16
Will Metcalf (R)
District 17
Stan Gerdes (R)
District 18
Janis Holt (R)
District 19
Ellen Troxclair (R)
District 20
Terry Wilson (R)
District 21
Dade Phelan (R)
District 22
Christian Manuel (D)
District 23
Terri Leo-Wilson (R)
District 24
Greg Bonnen (R)
District 25
Cody Vasut (R)
District 26
Matt Morgan (R)
District 27
Ron Reynolds (D)
District 28
Gary Gates (R)
District 29
Jeffrey Barry (R)
District 30
A.J. Louderback (R)
District 31
Ryan Guillen (R)
District 32
Todd Hunter (R)
District 33
Katrina Pierson (R)
District 34
District 35
Oscar Longoria (D)
District 36
Sergio Munoz (D)
District 37
Janie Lopez (R)
District 38
Erin Gamez (D)
District 39
Armando Martinez (D)
District 40
Terry Canales (D)
District 41
Robert Guerra (D)
District 42
Richard Raymond (D)
District 43
J.M. Lozano (R)
District 44
Alan Schoolcraft (R)
District 45
Erin Zwiener (D)
District 46
Sheryl Cole (D)
District 47
Vikki Goodwin (D)
District 48
Donna Howard (D)
District 49
Gina Hinojosa (D)
District 50
James Talarico (D)
District 51
District 52
Caroline Harris (R)
District 53
Wesley Virdell (R)
District 54
Brad Buckley (R)
District 55
Hillary Hickland (R)
District 56
Pat Curry (R)
District 57
Richard Hayes (R)
District 58
Helen Kerwin (R)
District 59
Shelby Slawson (R)
District 60
Mike Olcott (R)
District 61
District 62
Shelley Luther (R)
District 63
Ben Bumgarner (R)
District 64
Andy Hopper (R)
District 65
Mitch Little (R)
District 66
Matt Shaheen (R)
District 67
Jeff Leach (R)
District 68
David Spiller (R)
District 69
James Frank (R)
District 70
Mihaela Plesa (D)
District 71
Stan Lambert (R)
District 72
Drew Darby (R)
District 73
Carrie Isaac (R)
District 74
Eddie Morales (D)
District 75
Mary Gonzalez (D)
District 76
Suleman Lalani (D)
District 77
Vincent Perez (D)
District 78
Joseph Moody (D)
District 79
Claudia Ordaz (D)
District 80
Don McLaughlin (R)
District 81
Brooks Landgraf (R)
District 82
Tom Craddick (R)
District 83
Dustin Burrows (R)
District 84
Carl Tepper (R)
District 85
Stan Kitzman (R)
District 86
John Smithee (R)
District 87
Caroline Fairly (R)
District 88
Ken King (R)
District 89
Candy Noble (R)
District 90
Ramon Romero (D)
District 91
David Lowe (R)
District 92
Salman Bhojani (D)
District 93
Nate Schatzline (R)
District 94
Tony Tinderholt (R)
District 95
Nicole Collier (D)
District 96
David Cook (R)
District 97
John McQueeney (R)
District 98
District 99
Charlie Geren (R)
District 100
Venton Jones (D)
District 101
Chris Turner (D)
District 102
Ana-Maria Ramos (D)
District 103
Rafael Anchia (D)
District 104
Jessica Gonzalez (D)
District 105
Terry Meza (D)
District 106
Jared Patterson (R)
District 107
Linda Garcia (D)
District 108
Morgan Meyer (R)
District 109
Aicha Davis (D)
District 110
Toni Rose (D)
District 111
Yvonne Davis (D)
District 112
Angie Button (R)
District 113
Rhetta Bowers (D)
District 114
John Bryant (D)
District 115
District 116
Trey Fischer (D)
District 117
Philip Cortez (D)
District 118
John Lujan (R)
District 119
Elizabeth Campos (D)
District 120
District 121
Marc LaHood (R)
District 122
Mark Dorazio (R)
District 123
Diego Bernal (D)
District 124
Josey Garcia (D)
District 125
Ray Lopez (D)
District 126
Sam Harless (R)
District 127
District 128
Briscoe Cain (R)
District 129
Dennis Paul (R)
District 130
Tom Oliverson (R)
District 131
Alma Allen (D)
District 132
Mike Schofield (R)
District 133
Mano Deayala (R)
District 134
Ann Johnson (D)
District 135
Jon Rosenthal (D)
District 136
John Bucy (D)
District 137
Gene Wu (D)
District 138
Lacey Hull (R)
District 139
District 140
Armando Walle (D)
District 141
District 142
Harold Dutton (D)
District 143
Ana Hernandez (D)
District 144
Mary Perez (D)
District 145
District 146
Lauren Simmons (D)
District 147
Jolanda Jones (D)
District 148
Penny Shaw (D)
District 149
Hubert Vo (D)
District 150
Valoree Swanson (R)
Republican Party (88)
Democratic Party (62)
